(1) advice and assistance (the pink form scheme), which, subject to the
means of the applicant, allows the solicitor to give legal advice. On some specified occasions, court appearances may be possible under the scheme called ABWOR – assistance by way of representation;
(2) civil legal aid, which allows a court action to be raised or defended. Means are assessed, and the SLAB must be satisfied that the case has merit. As well as allowing the litigant legal services (perhaps subject to a contribution) a legal aid certificate can allow the court to reduce or waive the legal expenses normally payable by a losing litigant;
(3) criminal legal aid is available for the defence of criminal charges. Means are less important here – the question is whether it is in the interests of justice that the accused be represented. Unless or until
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there are no rules of evidence or procedure, and no need to cross- examine, it is quite clear that in the majority of cases justice requires the accused to have a lawyer.
The amounts paid to lawyers by way of fees under the schemes are fixed, often at heavily discounted rates.
The availability of legal aid is an important aspect of the HUMAN RIGHT to a FAIR TRIAL.
- community-service order
- Companies Acts
- company
- company insolvency proceedings
- company limited by guarantee
- company limited by shares
- comparative negligence
- compellability
- compensation
- compensation recovery
- compensator
- competency
- Competition Commission
- competition law
- competition policy (EU)
- complainant
- complainer
- complaint
- completion
- composition
- compos mentis
- compulsion
- compulsory purchase
- compulsory winding up
- compurgation